International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) will provide aid to victims of the Albania munitions explosions that occurred on March 15 in the town of Gerdec near the capital city of Tirana. The explosions killed 17 people and wounded 300 others. More than 3,500 people were forced to evacuate their homes as the massive explosions continued into the next day.

"Displaced villagers will not be able to return to their homes for at least six months and will need long term support," said IOCC Regional Director Mark Ohanian who is coordinating the response in Albania. IOCC will provide $10,000 of support including basic hygiene supplies and clothing for families who were displaced by the explosions. Psychological support and recreational activities will also be provided to children and young people.

This month, Fr. John Erickson will journey to Tanzania as an OCMC Mission Specialist to teach seminarians at the Kasikizi Catechetical Center. Fr. John began teaching at St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary in 1973 and is currently the Peter N. Gramowich Professor of Church History. He is also a well-known expert in Canon Law.

The Orthodox Church in Tanzania has grown tremendously under the leadership of His Eminence Jeronymos, Metropolitan of Mwanza. In the past 10 years, the number of parishes has more than tripled, and the number of Faithful has more than doubled. His Eminence has maintained a missionary spirit that helps the Church in Tanzania to thrive.

Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia Alexy II has voiced the hope that the UN will ensure the rights of Orthodox believers in Kosovo and Metochia.

"I hope the United Nations will do its best to ensure the access of Orthodox Christians to sacred places in Kosovo and prevent acts of violence against religious sites on that territory," he told UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon at the St. Daniel's Monastery in Moscow on Thursday.

The president of the European Commission met with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I in a visit to the Orthodox Patriarchate based in Constantinople on Friday.

Jose Manuel Barroso is on the second day of a three-day visit to Turkey, which is vying for EU membership. On Thursday, Barroso welcomed a Turkish decision to return property, such as school buildings, churches and orphanages, seized from Jewish and Christian foundations decades ago.

Barroso said the move was "a welcome step forward to address the difficulties of non-Muslim religious communities."

Strasbourg, April 9, Interfax - The representative of the Russian Orthodox Church claimed in Strasbourg to protect the right of children to advanced study of their religion or conviction systems in school.

"The basic knowledge about different religions should not replace voluntary study of the depth of one's own religion or system of convictions," deputy head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin said at the European conference on the religious dimension of intercultural dialogue.

The international Conference in Banja Luka (Republic of Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina) in February, 26-29, 2008 was organized by the International Foundation for the unity of Orthodox Christian Nations in cooperation with the Serbian Orthodox Church, and with support from the state authorities of the Republic of Srpska. It welcomed participants from the Inter-parliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy, as well as political, public and religious figures from 22 countries of the world. The participants carefully considered the live issues of the place and the role of the traditional religious values in modern society, realizing their rich positive potential for peace-making, and discussed the actual state and prospects of development in this context of interreligious dialogue.